Kay Bailey Hutchison: “Mr. President, I commend Senator Hatch for his commitment to ensuring protection of private property rights as required…”

“Mr. President, I commend Senator Hatch for his commitment to ensuring protection of private property rights as required by our Constitution and for trying to do everything we can to assure the private property provision of our Constitution is adhered to. People seem to overlook the fifth amendment sometimes, which says that: No person shall be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use without just compensation. In spite of this unequivocal protection of private property in the Bill of Rights, the Federal Government has often adopted laws that violate these important rights. One law, for example, which has been implemented to the detriment of private property rights in Texas is the Endangered Species Act. In the Texas Panhandle, the Endangered Species Act has been used to protect a bait fish called the Arkansas River shiner. To protect the fish in Texas, even though it thrives in New Mexico, the water supply for cities such as Amarillo and agriculture in the area are put in jeopardy.”